


Yellow, Is It Me You're Looking For?

by lululawrence



Category: BBC Radio 1 RPF, One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Banter, Because I can, Co-workers, Flirting, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Getting Together, Humor, M/M, No Smut, Pining, gratuitous references to shit greg has focused on during his show
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-05
Updated: 2019-06-05
Packaged: 2020-03-06 03:26:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18842677
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lululawrence/pseuds/lululawrence
Summary: Standing in the mess Greg’s shift had left behind, Louis decided he would start small. He’d organise the paint colour cards that displayed the names and then get started on the sample tins. It wasn’t until he started opening the boxes of colour cards that Louis started to wonder whether Nick had been the one to name the paint after all.Yellow, Is It Me You’re Looking For?was along the top left corner of a mustard yellow card. Nick was as big a fan of puns and music as anyone, so while it was unorthodox, Louis didn’t think too much of it. Part of the appeal of Annie’s Hardware was that they didn’t take things too seriously while always maintaining professionalism.The names that followed did leave Louis to wonder if Annie knew exactly what the chosen paint names were, though.The Colour Of My Tears When ‘FRIENDS’ Endedfor a soft white,Barneys Bloodfor a pale purple, and Blond. James Blond. for a sand tone had Louis convinced that it was a different co-worker who had renamed the colours.Or the one where Louis has pined after Greg for what seems like ages, but when Greg renames the company's paint colors, something might finally be ready to give.





	Yellow, Is It Me You're Looking For?

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Welcome to my completely self indulgent Grouis fic :D This was mostly inspired by a few tumblr posts which you can find [here](https://lululawrence.tumblr.com/post/182516133338/adrnired-example-of-a-tall-person-being-an), [here](https://lululawrence.tumblr.com/post/181898066528), and [here](https://lululawrence.tumblr.com/post/172174633008/obviousplant-renamed-paint-colors). They all made me giggle, and the idea they could be combined would NOT leave me alone. I hope you enjoy what came out of the combination!
> 
> Biggest thanks to my beta [Nicola](https://missytearex.tumblr.com) and my brit pick [KK](https://dinosaursmate.tumblr.com), especially since KK doesn't even like Grouis and she did this out of the kindness of her heart. hehe Even with their amazing help, though, I'm sure there are some remaining mistakes and those are entirely my own.
> 
> The title comes from one of the aforementioned tumblr posts (I'm sure it's easy enough to figure out which one, tbh), and I have no ownership over any of the characters or people mentioned in this fic, I have never met the band or Greg, Please don't share this with anyone associated with them, etc. Please also do not copy, repost, or translate this fic to any other website without my explicit permission. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy!

Louis checked his watch and was happy to find he’d actually arrived to work a few minutes early. Maybe that meant he’d finally get to see Greg today instead of just rushing past him as he clocked in and started answering questions from the various staff on his shift.

Greg was the shift leader in the morning and, before Louis was promoted to shift leader himself, he was actually on Greg’s team. It was during those two years that Louis learned exactly how infuriating and wonderful Greg was. He’d started nursing a hugely unrequited crush on him on around week three when he realised that Greg wasn’t mocking Louis’ excitement over working at Annie’s Hardware, he was equally as happy to be working in one of the largest hardware stores in the country owned by a woman. He wouldn’t say it had been a  _ goal _ to work there, but he’d always admired her for what she did with the company. It was because of Annie’s incredible head for business that he had been incredibly pleased to be able to be a part of the team while he finished uni. Once he realised Greg was just as proud to be a part of the well oiled machine that was Annie’s Hardware, he and Greg became fast friends and Louis had been half in love ever since.

These days, Greg only texted Louis to send him ridiculous memes that made no sense to Louis at all, but he didn’t mind. He’d take what he could get, even if it was just a random photo of a woman in a skip with absolutely zero explanation. That was just Greg, and Louis would happily take any attention from him that Greg was willing to give.

As part of the expansion that Annie was making into a few new counties and the additional demand for her premium paint line, she had learned the old company she had been going through wouldn’t be able to support her demand and she had switched paint companies. The only issue had been that they were required to change all of the paint colour names. The old company also claimed rights to the custom names she had originally come up with, and she had put the majority of the naming responsibilities on the store manager, Nick. Louis had got a text from Greg earlier that the paint samples and cards for customers to use in choosing a colour had come in and while his team would start the organisation, Louis’ would need to finish it. 

That wasn’t a problem, Louis was much more of a perfectionist regarding these things than Greg was. He was far more of a people person who enjoyed pushing boundaries to see how much he could get away with while Louis was the one to actually plan the ideas others came up with. It was part of the reason he knew, deep down, that he and Greg would be perfect for each other should Greg ever decide he needed a shorter, curvier man to play the role of life-partner.

Louis logged in and pouted when he saw Greg wasn’t showing as active on the floor.

“Louis, thank God,” Zayn said, walking into the break room where Louis was putting on his vest and nametag. “We’ve been slammed this morning and we really need help with the paint. We got all of the old displays taken down, but have barely started on the new ones. Harry’s needed assistance with the check outs almost all day and Niall hasn’t been able to cut any of that big key order we got from the new flat management company.”

“Shit,” Louis said as he tried to look out to the store. “Has it calmed down at all?”

“Only in the last half hour or so,” Zayn said with a shrug. “Seems strange to get so much business on a random Thursday, but what do I know.”

Zayn clocked out and waved, wishing Louis good luck, and Louis finished his start of shift responsibilities before heading out to the floor.

He’d built up in his head that the store would be in a state of disarray, and was glad to find that wasn’t the case. It looked just as well stocked and organised as it usually did. Well, all except the paint aisle. The paint aisle was another issue entirely.

It had been blocked off while they reorganised with a little sign that Louis knew Harry had drawn thanks to the flower doodles to make it look nicer, and Zayn was right. They’d got most of the old taken down, but the new was not quite ready yet.

Blowing out his cheeks, Louis walked back to the break room to do a quick shift meeting before he decided he would take over the paint organising himself.

Standing in the mess Greg’s shift had left behind, Louis decided he would start small so the customers had  _ something _ to go off of. He’d organise the paint colour cards that displayed the names and then get started on the sample tins.

Greg’s team had done a great job of relabelling the area and getting the shelves ready for the new inventory, so Louis was thankful for that at least. It wasn’t until he started opening the boxes of colour cards that Louis started to wonder whether Nick had been the one to name the paint after all.

_ Yellow, Is It Me You’re Looking For? _ was along the top left corner of a mustard yellow card. Nick was as big a fan of puns and music as anyone, so while it was unorthodox, Louis didn’t think too much of it. Part of the appeal of Annie’s Hardware was that they didn’t take things too seriously while always maintaining professionalism. 

The names that followed did leave Louis to wonder if Annie knew exactly what the chosen paint names were, though.  _ The Colour Of My Tears When ‘FRIENDS’ Ended _ for a soft white,  _ Barneys Blood _ for a pale purple, and  _ Blond. James Blond.  _ for a sand tone had Louis convinced that Nick wasn’t the one to name the paint colours at all. 

Louis pulled his phone out and opened to his message thread with Greg. 

_ Louis: The eternal darkness that will one day consume us all? Tarantino Red? Olive-ia Newton John? _

Shaking his head, he then set aside that particular shade of black in favour of a rust orange that was named  _ THE COLOUR OF STACY’S HAIR OH GOD I CAN STILL SMELL IT BABY IF YOU’RE READING THIS PLEASE CALL ME I MADE A MISTAKE!! _ Chuckling against his will, Louis continued opening the boxes. He was making sure to organise them by colour still so he could place them correctly in the display, but the names only seemed to get more ridiculous. 

_ You’ll Never Take Me Alive, COPPER _

_ Ugly Living Room (Seriously. Don’t.) _

_ Mmmmm……. Flesh _

It was the last two that had Louis feeling quite sure that Annie hadn’t ever signed off on these and Louis would now need to make sure she was okay with the names before they even put them into the display.

_ Help! I’m a Ghost! They’re Liquifying Us For Our Pure White Colour! THEY MUST BE STOPPED! OH GOD PLEASE HELP!!!!! Hahahaha JK I’m Not A Ghost. It’s Just Me, Greg, The Guy Who Named These Paint Colours. _

_ I Dunno, Enchanted Forest? Garden Path? Emerald Breeze? Who Cares, It’s A F***ing Paint Colour I Was Supposed To Be A Novelist Not Doing This Crap IT’S LIGHT GREEN, GARY! LIGHT! F***ING! GREEN! _

Not bothering to open any of the other boxes, Louis pulled his phone back out and texted Greg again. Greg had read his message, but not responded yet. Typical.

_ Louis: I have to call Annie about these, you know that, right? I will not hesitate to strangle you tomorrow. _

Arms full of the boxes for the colours he knew he couldn’t display, Louis felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. As soon as he got to the break room, he pulled it out and there was a single line that Louis probably  _ should _ have expected considering Greg had given Louis his phone number on the back of a card that read, “Yes, I am tall. I am 6’4. No, I do not play basketball. The weather is great up here. Thanks for the great conversation.”

_ Greg: Can you even reach my neck? _

Shaking his head, Louis pursed his lips. He was determined not to show any signs of being amused about a slight on his height, even from a giant like Greg.

_ Louis: Fuck you! Haha _

He’d just walked into Nick’s office, which was empty due to the fact he was helping Clara at the register, when his phone vibrated again.

_ Greg: Fuck me yourself, you coward. _

Louis’ mouth went dry. Was that… was he flirting with Louis? He didn’t mean that seriously, did he? Because if he did, Louis would not hesitate to show up at Greg’s flat after close. He had a paper to finish for tomorrow, but he didn’t want to give Greg the chance to take an offer like that back.

Clearing his throat, Louis decided to get his conversation with Annie done first. He’d deal with Greg and his possible flirting later.

 

*~~***~~*

 

Louis scrolled back through his texting conversation he’d been having with Greg all shift as he took a quick break. He’d  _ thought _ he had been inconspicuous, but apparently not.

“Who  _ have _ you been talking to the past few hours, Tomlinson?” Nick teased as he pulled the phone from Louis’ hand and scuttled away before Louis could get it back. “Oh, telling off our dear Gregory for what he left you with? That’s fair enough, I must say.”

Then, presumably, he’d read the most recent texts and his eyebrows rose.

Whistling softly, Nick smirked at Louis and handed his phone back. “So are you and Gregory finally getting your shit together, then?”

“What?” Louis blustered, making ridiculous sounds as he tried to sound genuine. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, mate.”

“Oh, sure,  _ mate,” _ Nick said teasingly. “You two used to make me sick with your googly eyes and flirting. I thought once you became a shift leader as well you two would finally get past whatever was holding you back. Harry and I were betting on it, actually. We’ve both been very disappointed in you two.”

“You have not,” Louis said, feeling a bit rankled. He’d done a fantastic job of covering up his crush on Greg, thank you very much. And it didn’t seem very nice that Nick was giving Louis ideas like Greg actually liking him back when Louis had been so sure up until today that was patently untrue. “Why would you do that, Greg doesn’t like me like that.” Eyeing Nick warily, Louis asked, “Does he?”

“He literally texted you earlier demanding you fuck him and has been very openly flirting with you ever since. I’m kind of surprised you’re still here, if I’m honest.”

Swallowing harshly, Louis pointed at Nick. “If you’re even fucking with me right now,” Louis threatened. He couldn’t even come up with something harsh to say. He was so shaken by the idea that his interest in Greg might actually truly be mutual, he could hardly think clearly.

“I swear, I’m not,” Nick said. Peeking out the break room door, Nick handed back Louis’ phone and nodded towards the door. “Go get your boy. I owe you for having to call Annie once you realised what Greg had done with the responsibility I gave him.”

“Yeah, okay,” Louis said, nodding. “Thanks, Nick.”

“Don’t tell a soul,” Nick said before walking out of the break room. “I’ve got a heartless reputation to uphold, after all.”

“You do not,” Louis yelled. “You’re worse than a gossiping nan.”

He heard Nick laugh brightly and then ripped off his vest and made his way out the employees only door. He had to go get a bouquet of flowers. Maybe some condoms. Who knew how lucky he’d be getting tonight?

 

*~~***~~*

 

Louis steeled himself. He was holding a mostly fresh bouquet he’d found at the Tesco Express on the corner and had a few packets of lube and condoms in his pocket, just in case. The last time he’d stood where he was now was for the large birthday party Greg had thrown for himself last December. Greg was sort-of-maybe seeing a girl named Bella at that time, Louis had been worried about why he was even trying to show up.

Now, he was worried that he was being forward and Greg was in no way serious.

That was the thing with Greg. Louis loved how he would say something and you knew he was being over the top about things he wasn’t serious about, but that made it so much harder to tell when he was actually telling the truth. Texting made that even harder.

And yet, there Louis was. Standing outside Greg’s building again, and this time with flowers. 

“Now or never,” Louis muttered and then walked up to buzz Greg’s flat. A crackling sound was heard and Louis said, “Ehm, hello? Greg? It’s Louis.”

More crackling followed, but then the door clicked indicating it was unlocked, so he figured he at least wasn’t being turned away. Not entirely, at least. He’d have to wait and see Greg’s reaction when he got to the door.

Once Louis had climbed the stairs to the third floor, Louis double checked his fringe and then knocked on Greg’s door. 

There was no answer. No yelling or anything.

Greg had been the one buzzing him up, right? Oh God, what if Louis had accidentally hit someone else’s flat and because their intercom wasn’t working, he didn’t realise?

Louis knocked once more and this time he heard Greg shouting, “Hold on, you impatient child.” He added some more expletives as he unlocked the door then sighed as he took in Louis and the flowers. Popping his hip and tilting his head, Greg smiled up to Louis and asked, “Didn’t you hear when I said I had to get dressed and to give me a mo’?”

Blinking, Louis said, “It was just static, mate.”

“Fuck,” Greg muttered, rolling his eyes and opening the door some more. “They swore they’d fixed that, sorry. I was in the bath. Didn’t want to greet you completely undressed.”

Louis arched his brow. Now that he looked closer, Greg’s shirt was sticking to his chest a bit, like he’d not bothered to dry properly before putting it on. “Didn’t you?”

Greg smirked. “You’d like to know.” Still standing beside the door, Greg nodded at the flowers. “Those for me?”

“Nah,” Louis said, shrugging. “On my way to the other guy’s flat who asked me to fuck him before you did. Just thought I’d stop by and rub it in.”

Narrowing his eyes at Louis, Greg took a few steps forward so Louis had to tilt his head back in order to have a chance at looking at him. He could feel the wet warmth coming off of Greg still from his bath. 

“You wouldn’t do that to me, would you?” Greg asked. His eyes were dark, but his smile was just as wide and genuine as it always was. Louis would do almost anything Greg asked him to if he flashed that smile his way. “Come here and brag about some other guy when you know I’ve only wanted you for years.”

Louis scoffed. “Oh sure. Years.”

“Yeah,” Greg said, smile dropping and a sad crease showing between his brows. “Didn’t realise all it was gonna take would be demanding you come and fuck me.”

Shaking his head, Louis said, “You’ve got it backwards, mate.” Louis gave Greg a little shove the same time he said  _ mate.  _ “I’m the one who’s liked you for years. I didn’t ever realise I even had a chance with you until today.”

Louis dropped the flowers onto the table Greg was now standing beside and pushed into his space. He allowed himself to reach out and grab ahold of Greg’s waist and squeeze. 

“Of course you had a chance,” Greg whispered. “I thought you knew. Everyone else did.”

“That would have been nice to know ages ago,” Louis said before finally lifting onto his toes and pressing a kiss to the corner of Greg’s mouth. “We could make up for that lost time, you know.”

Greg licked his lips and nodded. “The bath was getting cold anyway.”

“Was not,” Louis said with a laugh. “I’m just worth giving up a hot bath for.”

“Not gonna disagree with that,” Greg said before pulling Louis back to his room.

 

*~~***~~*

 

Louis had stayed the night and ended up realising around two am that he still hadn’t finished his paper. He used Greg’s laptop to finish the paper in bed while Greg slept. The next morning he realised he only had his work clothes from the day before and he didn’t exactly feel like wearing them to class.

Louis had just hopped back into the trousers when Greg tossed a jumper at him. 

“Here. You’re always cold, anyways.”

Louis looked at it and then at Greg. “This is going to be massive on me. You do realise you’re the size of Hagrid, right?”

“Yes, well. If I remember correctly, you like that.” Greg wagged his eyebrows and leaned in for a quick kiss before heading back to his wardrobe to finish getting dressed himself. “Come on. If you get ready fast enough, I’ll cook us up some eggs and toast.”

Louis quickly threw the jumper on and, as expected, it came down to mid thigh and the sleeves hung well past his hands. He quickly shoved the sleeves up as best he could before going to the bathroom to fix his hair. He’d used Greg’s toothpaste and face wash this morning as well. He’d never felt so enveloped in Greg’s scent before, and he loved it.

Making his way into the kitchen, he saw Greg humming along with whatever song was playing on Radio 1 as he placed the eggs and toast on two different plates. 

“This isn’t a one time thing, right?” Louis blurted out. He didn’t think it was, but the worry had been creeping in slowly since he’d been working on his paper in the middle of the night.

Greg gave him a strange look over his shoulder and asked, “Do you think I’d give my sweater to some lad I didn’t expect to sleep with again and then make him brekkie?”

Louis stuck his tongue out and sat down at the table where a tea was already waiting for him. He hadn’t thought he’d taken that long on his hair, but apparently it was long enough. 

“You never know, Gregory. I was just making sure.”

Greg placed the plates on the table and then walked around the table. He pulled Louis’ seat away from the table so he could lean down only inches away from Louis’ face.

“I’d very much like to do this every morning and call you my boyfriend,” he said slowly and clearly. “Does that sound alright with you, Louis Tomlinson?”

Leaning forward for another kiss, Louis said, “Yes. Please.”

“Great,” Greg said with a smile. He walked to his own chair now and, once he was seated, he looped his ankle around Louis’. “Now we’ve got that sorted, let’s eat.”

Louis dug into the eggs and couldn’t help how often he looked up at Greg. He couldn’t get used to the idea it had all been that easy, but he was more than willing to adjust to the thought.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! I hope you liked it. If you did, I would greatly appreciate you leaving a kudos, a nice comment, and/or reblogging [the fic post](https://lululawrence.tumblr.com/post/185385372433/yellow-is-it-me-youre-looking). Thanks again!


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